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Walk the Weir
Walk the Weir is a Colkinom in-universe play written by Seraphina Anderson. It was written while the playwright was living in France, and premiered in French in the Théâtre du Montblesse (its English premiere was in London two months later). Anderson claims that it is a play about 'change, light at the end of the tunnel, and fatherhood'. Plot Act 1 Scene 1 A boy is pacing along a weir. The current is not very strong. After a while, he sits down with a sigh. A girl (Emma) walks along the riverside and asks him what he's doing. He refuses to talk, but with kindness, Emma manages to discover that his name is Toby and that he's here because his father is a scumbag. While Emma and Toby talk, actors in the background play out the stories they tell by way of silhouettes - Toby explains how his mother died of illness and his father turned abusive, and Emma tells Toby about how her parents split up but she sees them both sometimes. Toby and Emma become friends in this short time, and Emma's advice to Toby is not to let his father tell him what to do with his future. She offers Toby some food from her picnic, but while attempting to cross the weir to get to him, a stronger current knocks her off balance and she falls down. Toby jumps down to save her and pulls her from the river. Scene 2 On the riverside, he explains to Emma that sometimes he walks along the weir because he hopes that'll happen to him, but her experience has shown him that he needs to stop 'walking the weir' (a metaphor for avoiding the decisions he has to make) and he goes home with Emma. Act 2 Scene 1 Emma, now grown up, is reading letters from Toby. The letters' content are acted out in silhouettes, like in the first act. He left town, became an architect, married a man named Pablo and adopted a child named Riley. After reading through the letters, she gets a knock at the door. It's the postman, with two more letters from Toby. He listens at the door while Emma reads aloud. In the first letter, Toby says that both his father and husband have fallen ill. He doesn't know whether to be sad for his father. In the second letter, it is revealed that Pablo died, and that he is coming back to his home town after the funeral, but still doesn't know whether to feel sorry for his father. Scene 2 The next day, Emma and Toby meet up. It is evident that neither Toby or his son, Riley, have taken Pablo's death very well. They seem distant and, after an argument over dinner, Riley runs off. In a silhouette of him running through the rain, he explains via internal monologue that he loves his dad but he lives in the past and isn't his own man. In a second grey sillhouette behind the first, he explains that Toby is a controlling father who won't let him live his life and tries to live through him. Scene 3 The silhouettes end, and Toby is trying to find Riley. He runs through the street calling for him, before collapsing in the rain. The postman appears and offers to take him in his van, as he saw Riley heading towards the weir. Toby is rushed to the weir, internal monologue telling the audience that he fears he's become his father and, in trying to live through his son, he has managed to alienate him and become his enemy, especially during the time when he needs him most. Scene 4 When they reach the weir, Riley is on the middle of it. Toby and Riley argue, and Toby promises to be a better father to Riley. However, a strong current knocks Riley off his balance. Toby and the postman both rush to grab him, but he falls from the weir and begins to be swept down the river. Toby leaps in and grabs him, but the current is too strong, until the postman uses the strap of his bag as a handle for Toby to grab and uses it to pull him and Riley ashore. A letter from Toby's dad to Toby falls out of the bag, and Toby decides to stop walking the weir and do what's right. Final Scene The play ends with Toby in a hospital room with his father while Emma and Riley sit outside. The postman arrives with a bunch of flowers, asking Riley if he's done walking the weir, and the curtain falls. Characters Toby Toby is the main character of the play. He has a difficult relationship with his father and, eventually, a difficult one with his son. The play follows him learning to make decisions. Emma Emma is the other main character. She helps Toby in his times of need, such as coaxing him from the weir and consoling him after his husband's death. Toby's father Toby's father is only seen in silhouettes until the final scene. After his wife's death he is temperamental and unfair towards his son, but falls ill during the second act and is humbled. Pablo Pablo is Toby's husband, seen only in silhouettes. He dies of sickness, prompting Toby to ask why life chooses the people it does. Riley Riley is Toby's son, who replaces him on the weir wall in the second act. He believes his father to be too controlling, especially in the wake of Pablo's death. The Postman The Postman is a minor character who, surprisingly, saves both Toby and Riley's lives, as well as delivering the letters that set off Act 2. He is implied to be a good friend of Emma's. Trivia * In the British premiere, Anderson's father played Toby's dad. This led to Anderson having to confirm that she had (and has) a loving relationship with her father, and that the play did not reflect any sour feelings for him. * The play premiered in the city of Montblesse, which is the birthplace of Teanna Rose. * It is also known as 'The Weir', 'Walk', and 'The Silhouette Play'. * The addition of the postman as a major character in the second act was a 'last minute' edit, as Anderson felt that an 'epiphany' called for an unexpected 'hero' to help show the element of chance in the play. Category:In universe Category:Theatre